Read Your Seed Tags

Last year in 2012, I had two bits of information on the seed tags which caused me some concern. The first bit of information dealt with the weight of the 80,000 kernel count bags. My weights varied from 37.5 lbs/80,000 k to 60 lbs/80,000 k. I questioned whether this difference in kernel weight would affect early stand counts and the answer was no. The other bit of information that caused me concern was 92% germination vs. the standard of 95% germination on the remainder of my seed corn. I found that the 92% germination seed corn had approximately 1000 to 1200 less plants per acre than the 95% germination corn. A 1000 plant shortage per acre in a normal year is equal to 6 to 10 Bu/A yield difference.